Following my earlier posting on referral arrangements I received an email from a medical agency this morning offering their services which further clarifies the web which exists in relation to referral arrangements. Perhaps I ought to explain that it is possible when obtaining medical evidence in a personal injury claim to instruct an agency to select from a panel of experts the person to instruct and arrange the appointment. The alternative and a procedure I generally follow is to choose the expert and place the instruction direct which is my desired approach.
However the email offered me an incentive of £40 per case by this particular agency to use their services which, whilst appreciated, is not acceptable and certainly not in my client’s best interests.
I have to ask is this another example of money being made out of the client’s misfortune and that does seem to be the case. In this case the solicitor is receiving £40, dare I say to perhaps offset against the referral fee he has already paid, which I feel must raise the question of whether the solicitor is acting in the client’s best interests.
If an instruction is placed through an agency the question must be asked whether the best expert is being used as generally and from experience I find the best experts need not be on an agency’s panel, as they will receive the cases as they are known to the experienced instructing solicitor, such as myself.
I believe this is a further example of the client’s best interests being served by their chosen solicitor and not necessarily the solicitor on the panel who writes the biggest cheque and who then tries to recoup some of that cost through receiving referral fees and/or thank you payments themselves.
If you have a case that you wish to discuss please contact us on our enquiry form on our website at http://www.rogers-norton.co.uk/make-a-claim.htm we would be delighted to speak to you.
Alternatively, for further information please contact the Personal Injury Department at pi@rogers-norton.co.uk
However the email offered me an incentive of £40 per case by this particular agency to use their services which, whilst appreciated, is not acceptable and certainly not in my client’s best interests.
I have to ask is this another example of money being made out of the client’s misfortune and that does seem to be the case. In this case the solicitor is receiving £40, dare I say to perhaps offset against the referral fee he has already paid, which I feel must raise the question of whether the solicitor is acting in the client’s best interests.
If an instruction is placed through an agency the question must be asked whether the best expert is being used as generally and from experience I find the best experts need not be on an agency’s panel, as they will receive the cases as they are known to the experienced instructing solicitor, such as myself.
I believe this is a further example of the client’s best interests being served by their chosen solicitor and not necessarily the solicitor on the panel who writes the biggest cheque and who then tries to recoup some of that cost through receiving referral fees and/or thank you payments themselves.
If you have a case that you wish to discuss please contact us on our enquiry form on our website at http://www.rogers-norton.co.uk/make-a-claim.htm we would be delighted to speak to you.
Alternatively, for further information please contact the Personal Injury Department at pi@rogers-norton.co.uk
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